AP English 4 English Summer Reading
2015-2016
Part 1: Self-Select Novel
Choose from the list of novel titles below. Read and annotate the text as you read. You will need these annotations
for another assignment after school starts.
Novels you may use – These were chosen for their appearance on the AP Literature Exam. Note that while these novels have all
appeared at least once on the AP Exam, I make no claims regarding their content. Research the synopsis of any book before you
purchase or read it if you’re worried about being offended by the subject matter.
 = This work has been cited multiple times (5+) on recent AP exams. (That does not have to affect your choice; it’s just FYI.)
All the Pretty Horses (McCarthy)
Atonement (McEwan)
Beloved (Morrison)
Bless Me, Ultima (Anaya)
The Bluest Eye (Morrison)
Catch-22 (Heller)
Ceremony (Silko)
The Color Purple (Walker)
Invisible Man (Ellison**)
The Kite Runner (Hosseini)
A Lesson Before Dying (Gaines)
Native Son (Wright)
Obasan (Kogawa)
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Marquez)
The Poisonwood Bible (Kingsolver)
The Secret Life of Bees (Kidd)
Sister of My Heart (Divakaruni)
Sula (Morrison)
Their Eyes Were Watching God (Hurston)
The Things They Carried (O’Brien)
A Thousand Splendid Suns (Hosseini)
**Invisible Man NOTE: Be careful to read Ralph Ellison’s book, NOT the science fiction novel by H. G. Wells. No
credit will be given for reading the wrong book.
It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: Don’t choose a book you’ve read before for another class.
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT: After reading, select one of the “Ontological Questions” from the list attached that you feel
applies to your novel. Apply this question as you respond to the following prompt, using your self-selected novel as
your novel choice.
Prompt: Critic Roland Barthes has said, “Literature is the question minus the answer.” Choose a novel
or play, and, considering Barthes’ observation, write an essay in which you analyze a central question
the work raises and the extent to which it offers answers. Explain how the author’s treatment of this
question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary.
Grades are
based on:
-- Completeness of your essay. (Answer the question thoroughly. I think it will take between 400
and 500 words. Longer is all right, but when you hit 700, start winding it up.)
-- Quality of thought in your essay.
-- All work is your own. Anything that comes from Sparknotes, Wikipedia, or anything that
resembles those websites will result in the entire assignment’s being rejected as plagiarized. Don’t
risk it.
Part 2: Lord of the Flies -- William Golding
This book is short and very easy to read. Don’t be insulted by its simplicity; we will use the novel as a basis for
training for the AP Literature essay.
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Read the novel, annotating the text as you read. As with your self-selected work, you will use these
annotations for something else after school starts.
There will be a READING TEST on the novel after you begin school in August. Study questions that will help
you focus on plot, setting, and main character details are posted online.
Produce a Character Journal for your reading (See below.)
Directions for the Character Journal
Your character journal is going to help you chart the DEVELOPMENT of a character from beginning to end of the
novel.
On the website there is a document called “Characterization Journal.” You may print as many copies of this as you
need OR you may simply recreate the required information on your own paper. (I didn’t leave you a lot of room to
write.) As long as those 4 elements (Quote, Context, Analysis, and Commentary) are there, you’re good. You’ll need
these 4 things for each entry, and you will have 10 total entries:
1. Quotation -- well-chosen to reveal something about the character; INCLUDE PAGE NUMBERS here.
2. Context – a brief description of where your quotation falls in the story; DO NOT use page numbers as context.
3. Analysis – an explanation of what the quotation reveals about the character
4. Commentary – a statement of how this character’s development is important to the meaning of the novel.
Character:
Simon – This is just an example
Quote
Context
Analysis/Commentary
Underline important words
Where is it in the story?
(Effect on the reader; What do we understand about
this character from this quotation? How has he changed?)
Simon (Example only)
the middle of the novel as the
“What I mean to say is. . .maybe
boys are frightened by “The
it’s only us.”(p. 89)
Beast.” They’ve been on the
island for a while when their
fear begins to grip them.
Simon is the character who remains thoughtful
throughout the novel. This quotation shows him being
reasonable and civilized in the face of chaos. Simon’s
words might as well be Golding’s: there is no Beast
on the island; the fear and death are coming from the
boys themselves.
Categories for your Lord of the Flies Journal: There will be at least ten total entries in your journal.
1. Three (3) quotations that reveal JACK’s CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT; use quotations from
BEGINNING – MIDDLE – END
2. Three (3) quotations that reveal RALPH’S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT; use quotations from
BEGINNING – MIDDLE -- END
3. Two (2) quotations that show ROGER’S CHARACTER from BEGINNING and END (no middle)
4. Two (2) quotations that show PIGGY’S CHARACTER from BEGINNING and END (no middle)
5. You may certainly do more, but these 10 are required.
Formatting Instructions:
 Typing is fine, but it’s not required.
 Please do not write on the back. (It’s hard to read and really hurts my eyes.)
 You will STAPLE your journal together. Don’t use a folder, please.
 Please be sure your name is on it.
Journals are due: THE FIRST DAY OF CLASS, so be sure you have it with you.
Grades are
-- Completeness
based on:
-- Thought and insight found in your discussions
-- Following all directions concerning formatting the document
-- All work is your own. (Honestly, if you need Sparknotes for Lord of the Flies, you might want to re-
think the whole “AP English” thing. It’ll be a long year.)
Let’s Recap -Here’s what you owe me during the first week of school:
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An essay on your self-selected novel in response to the prompt provided due on the first day of class.
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A character journal over Lord of the Flies due on the first day of class.
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You’ll take a reading test over Lord of the Flies before the first week of school is over.
Failure to complete these assignments will have a negative effect on your average for the first six weeks. Please keep
in mind that your response to these assignments will constitute my first impression of your ability and dedication as a
student. Don’t peg yourself immediately as the kid who’s always looking for the easy way out. Besides, I’ve read the
Sparknotes, Wikipedia articles, and various other cheat-the-system resources for these books.
If you need to contact me over the summer, you can reach me at [email protected]. I try to check this at least
once a week.
Some Ontological Questions Addressed by Authors
1.
What is the meaning of life?
2.
How should I live?
3.
How can I accept the idea that someday my life will end?
4.
What does it mean to be a good person?
5.
What is truth?
6.
Am I brave, or a coward? Does courage matter?
7.
Do the rewards of life balance or outweigh its pain?
8.
How should people treat each other?
9.
What do women/men want? How can the sexes coexist harmoniously?
10. How can man live in the ugliness of modern world without despair?
11. Why do evil and suffering exist?
12. How can we tell the false from the genuine?
13. Does my existence matter? (Do I dare disturb the universe?)
14. How can dreams affect one’s life?
15. Is following the rules of society (morality) more important than
survival as an individual?
16. Can one’s insecurities be destructive?
17. Does one’s ethical standard outweigh the moral standard of society?
18. Is it right to resist or oppose authority?
19. How can one find meaning in life?
Ontological = concerned with the
nature of being.
Literature really IS the question minus
the answer. . . and so is LIFE. Life
itself is a riddle sometimes, and one of
my goals is to make you more
comfortable with questions that only
raise more questions. There aren’t any
answers in the back of the book.
These are LIFE questions that often are
on authors’ minds when they write.
Take Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird,
for example. For most of the text,
Scout’s main question is “WHY?” Why
are things the way they are – for Tom
Robinson, for the teacher, for Walter
Cunningham, for Mrs. Dubose? But
just looking at Scout saying “why”
doesn’t touch us as humans. It’s the
connection to these “life” questions that
makes this a popular novel. In
exploring Scout’s questions, we see
elements of # 6, #18, and #24. We
may never have had to deal with smalltown racism, but we’ve ALL asked had
to deal with what happens when we
resist authority.
Let’s say you want to write about #18.
Your essay would show how Scout
questions authority. How do her
questions change? How much are they
answered? What are her questions like
at the end? Those ideas will form the
basis of your essay.
20. What is the responsibility of parent to child or creator to creation?
21. Can one recapture or relive the past?
22. What is the result of attempting to avoid the consequences of one’s actions?
23. How can one learn his identity?
24. How can one prevail against the pressure of his society?
25. Since Life always ends in death, how can it have meaning?
Source: Jerry Brown (jerrywbrown.com)